New York State PTA
One Wembley Court
Albany, NY 12205
Phone: 1-518-452-8808
Toll Free: 1-877-5NYSPTA
or 1-877-569-7782
Fax: 1-518-452-8105
Email: pta.office@nyspta.org
History
On February 17, 1897,
the PTA idea took on the force and vitality of a nationwide movement
when some 2,000 people arrived in Washington, DC to discuss “questions
most vital to the welfare of children and the manifold interests of the
home.” They came in response to the call of Alice McLellan Birney and
Phoebe Apperson Hearst and met for three days. When they left, they had
brought into being a national organization dedicated to safeguarding and
promoting the welfare of children in home, school, place of worship, and
community, an organization that was to grow in strength and influence.
Today, there are fifty-four congresses in all fifty states, the District
of Columbia, the Virgin Islands, and schools serving military dependents
in Europe and the Pacific. Through the efforts of Selena Sloan Butler,
the National Congress of Colored Parents and Teachers was founded in
1926 at a time when segregated schools were mandated in the southern
United States. In 1970, with the merger of the National PTA and the
National Congress of Colored Parents and Teachers, PTA became a unified
organization of persons interested in the well-being of children
regardless of differences. PTA’s strength lies in its variety of
members: parents, grandparents, teachers, single parents, business
people, administrators, and anyone who cares about children.
PTA in New York actually predates the national meeting in 1897 by two
years. Alice McLellan Birney attended the “School for Parents” in
Chautauqua and talked with other women about her idea of drawing mothers
together for better homes, schools, and communities for all children.
The New York organization became the first state congress. Fannie Barnes
was the first president. The first state meeting, which attracted fifty
members, was held in Syracuse on September 30 and October 1, 1897.
The New York State PTA is incorporated as a not-for-profit organization
under the laws of New York State and serves as a branch of National PTA.
For more information please select a link below:
History
Purposes, Vision, Mission, Beliefs
